Folding sunshade and tent.



J. BARKER.

FOLDING SUNSHADE AND TENT.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 29. 1916.

1,225,917, Patented May15, 1917.

4 Inga rib- TERS (20.. Pnomu'rno). wAsillm; mu, D. c.

mares.

TTE FINT t me.

FOLDING SUN SHADE AND TENT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 15, 1917.

Application filed February 29, 1916. Serial No. 81,142.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that 1, JOHN BARKER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Los Angeles, in the county of Los Angeles, State of California, have invented new and useful Improvements in Folding Sunshades and Tents, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a sunshade or tent; and it is an object of this invention to provide simple, neat and compact form of folding sunshade or tent which may be easily carried from place to place, easily and quickly set up and then used. either as a shade or as a complete tent. It is one of the objects of this invention to provide a folding device which may be used on the beach or which may be used as a tent or dressing room. Many other uses will be apparent from consideration of the device itself.

In its preferred form, my improved device embodies a horizontal ridge member under which a pair of canvas awnings or roof members are rolled upon spring rollers. These roof members are adapted to be lowered diagonally on opposite sides of the ridge member so as to form the roof of the shade or tent. Either one or both sides of the shade may be lowered as desired. Supporting legs are provided for the ridge member and are foldable underneath the ridge member and the rollers; and means are provided for holding the legs in normal extended position with relation to the ridge member. I also provide end and side walls which may be set up and attached to the device so as to form a complete tent or dressing room, or the like, when desired.

My preferred form of device is explained in detail in the following specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a side elevation showing my device in use as a sunshade with one side lowered; Fig. 2 is a section taken as indicated by line 22 on Fig. 1, showing an end wall and a side wall in place; Fig. 3 is an enlarged detail section taken as indicated by line 33 on Fig. 2. Fig. 1 is an enlarged detail section taken as indicated by line 4-4 on Fig. 2 showing the bracing means for the legs; Fig. 5 is a detail section taken. as indicated by line 55 on Fig. 2

showing the attachment of the end wall, Fig. 6 is a enlarged detail section showing the method of attachment of the side wall, and Fig. 7 shows the device folded.

In the drawings the numeral 10 designates a ridge member, which may be a flat board, carryin at each end a metal bracket 11, preferably an aluminum casting, which bracket extends downwardly and then in wardly at 11 and carries the hinge or pivot 12 upon which the leg plate 13 is carried. This leg plate 13 is formed as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. A. pair of legs 15 is pivoted at 16 to each leg plate so that the legs may be opened out to the position shown in Fig. 2 or closed inwardly toward each other in the directions indicated by the arrows, when the device is to be folded. The upper ends of the legs above the pivots 16 engage with each other when the legs are spread apart, limiting the outward movements of the legs. The legs and the leg plate 13 are held in the position shown in Fig. 1 by means of collapsible braces 17. These braces are shown in detail in Fig. 4:. Each brace comprises two members 18 and 19 pivoted at 20 and 21 to the ridge member 10 and plate 13, respectively, and pivoted together at 22. A small lug 18 on member 18 bears against one side, or in a notch 19 cut in one side, of the member 19, preventing the downward breaking of the members 18 and 19 forming the brace, but allowing the pivotal point 22 to move upwardly so that the brace may be broken upwardly and so that the brace will fold up underneath member 10 when the legs are folded up in the direction indicated by the arrows in Fig. 1. The brace members 18 and 19 are of un equal lengths, these lengths being determined in such a manner that the brace will fold up neatly and easily when the legs are folded upwardly. The folded position of all the parts will be hereinafter fully explained.

Two rollers 30 are carried between the brackets 11; and the roof canvases 31 are rolled upon these rollers. These rollers are equipped with the usual winding springs 32 and pawls 33 which operate in the ordinary manner to roll up the roof canvases to the 'position shown at the left in Fig. 2, and to hold the roof canvases extended in any desired position. These rollers are the usual shade roller and operate in the well known manner. lVhen it is desired to lower the roof canvas it is only necessary to grasp the slat at the lower edge of the roof canvas and pull downwardly upon it. Each slat 3% is separated by swinging braces or arms 35 from the legs 15. These arms 35 are pivoted at 36 to the legs and at 37 to the slats 3 f. The pivots at 86 are in such a plane that the arms will throw downwardly and outwardly as is clearly indicated in the draw ings; while the pivots 3% are in such a plane that, when the roof canvases are rolled up and the device is to be folded, then the arms will fold up in the direction indicated by the arrows in Fig. l, the arms swinging around the pivotal points 37 while the legs swing around the pivots or hinges 12. lVhen the device is in its folded position the legs of each pair are folded together laterally and each pair of legs is then folded upwardly and inwardly, one pair under the other against the rollers; the roof canvases being completely rolled up on the rollers and the braces 17 folded up between the rolls under the member 10. The position of the various parts when folded is shown in Fig. 7. A strap, 50, or the like, may be put around the bundle and the whole device may then be carried by the handle 38. The whole device when folded forms a neat and compact bundle sightly in appearance and of very small w ight. The tent about siX feet long may be made to weigh approximately 1.5 pounds or less.

ll/hen the device is used as a sunshade, on the beach for instance, the legs are braced into the sand and then either or both sides of the roof canvas are pulled down so as to form a shade in any direction desired. The device also forms a wind break. lVhen used as a tent or dressing room, the end walls 40 roof canvas. A complete tent is thus made which may be used for any of the purposes to which tents or shelters are ordinarily put: As a tent ordressing room or shelter my device is particularly useful to automobile parties, belng compact and hght to carry and belng easily and quickly set up in any situation. It will be noted that the legs 15.

stand at a slight angle so as to make the whole structure spring in a longitudinal direction but that the lower ends of the legs stand on a line with theupper ends of the transverse ber. r V combination, a ridge member, ex-

upper ridge member 10, so that the end walls 10 will not be bulged outwardly by the legs 15. When the device is used as a tent the roof canvases are pulled down approximately to their position of greatest lateral spread, so as to make a tent of the largest possible ground area. used as a sunshade, etc., the roof canvases can be pulled clear down to where the edge slat is near or touches the ground.

Having described the preferred form of my invention, 1 claim:

1. In combination, an elongated ridge member, a bracket at each end of said ridge member, said bracket extending downwardly and then inwardly longitudinally under the ridge member, a transverse pivot carried at the inner under end of each bracket, a leg plate mounted on each of said transverse pivots and adapted to lie normally in an approximately vertical plane.

or to fold inwardly and upwardly under the ridge member to a horizontal position, a pair of supporting legs pivoted to each of said leg plates to swing thereontransversely of the elongated ridge member so that the legs of each pair may swing outwardly from each other at the lower ends, folding brace means for holding said leg plates normallyin their vertical positions, a pair of spring winding rollers carried longitudinally beneath the ridge member and supported in the end brackets, a pair of roof canvases rolled upon said rollers, edge slats for the upper edges of said roof can- 7 vases, and folding means forsupporting the slats from the legs embodying arms pivoted one to each leg to swing in the planes of the legs and pivoted to said slats to swing in the planes of the slats and longitudinally of the ridge member.

2. In combination, a ridge member, eX- tensible canvases attached thereto, supports for the ridge member at each end there of embodying a member pivoted to the ridge member to swing between a position extending vertically downwardly from the memagainst the ridge member, and a pair of supporting legs plvoted to each of saidpivoted members to swing thereon in a planev of the length 'of'the' ridge mem 3. In tcnsible canvases attachedthereto, supports for the ridge member one at each en'd'there But when 7 ber and a. position folded horizontally of embodying a member pivoted to" the ridge member to swing betweena position extending vertically downwardly'from the member and a position folded horizontally against the ridge member, and a pair of sup-i porting legs pivoted to each of said piv-' oted members to, swing thereon in a plane transverse of the length'of the ridge member; edge slats forv the canvases, and supporting means for the canvases embodying have hereunto subscribed my name this 23d arms pivoted one to each leg to swing in day of February, 1916.

the planes of the legs transversely of the ridge member and pivoted to said slats to JOHN BARKER 1 swing in the planes of the slats and longi- Witnesses:

tudinally of the ridge member. JAMES T. BARKELEW,

In Witness that I claim the foregoing I ELWOOD H. BARKELEW.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of latents, Washington, D. 0. 

